LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KTHV) -A dog found at a Little Rock shelter is gaining national recognition and will be honored in Hollywood this fall.

It was love at first sight.

"I went running towards him, he went running towards me. Our arms were outstretched, we grabbed each other and that was all she wrote," Donna Waugh explained. Although Waugh rescued John D from a Little Rock animal shelter, he is not your typical dog. "He went on his first search when he was four months old."

John D is a highly trained search and rescue dog that has been moved to the clinical realm.

"We said well, if there's any dog that could do it, it's John D. Let's try," said Waugh.

John D is also trained to detect human cancer by scent.

"We teach them how to recognize a hot sample if you will--a sample of a cancer patient versus a cold sample," Dr. Arny Ferrando explained.

Through urine, blood and saliva samples ,John D and his other pooch partners can determine if a patient has ovarian or thyroid cancer.

Nominated for the American Humane Association Hero Dog of the Year in the search and rescue category, John D is on his way to Hollywood.

"He's gone to a number of large national disasters including the Joplin tornado, the floods after Nashville, and then he responds here to the state police and local emergency officials for kidnappings, missing people," Waugh added.

Ready for the red carpet, John D hopes to walk away with the title, but his owner said she will be happy regardless of the outcome.

"We would be thrilled with any of these dogs because it brings focus to what dogs can do to help humans. In their service work, it's amazing. The heroic stories of any dog is worthy of being the winner," Waugh concluded.